Mount Huashan

Situated in Huayin City, Mount Huashan is 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Xi'an. It is famous for natural vista of steep and narrow paths, precipitous crags and a high mountain range. Its five peaks are the representative attractions and each has its distinctive charms: East Peak is the best place to enjoy the sunrise; South Peak has the highest altitude; West Peak is the most elegant; North Peak is famous as the Cloud Terrace Peak and Middle Peak is also called Jade Lady Peak.

The Mount Huashan is also home to several influential Taoist temples, where many emperors of past dynasties took part in Taoist activities and sacrificed to the god of mountain, making it a holy land of Taoism. At its foot, are the representatives of its Taoist elements:

Mount Huashan Hiking Trails

Hike on Huashan Mountain is very popular among visitors. For many years most people have taken a traditional but efficient walking-ascending and cable-car-descending route for this mountain climbing. By taking this route, visitors can experience not only its danger, but also the major meaningful scenic spots. At the foot of Mt. Huashan, you can start your trip by visiting the Jade Spring Temple. After that, you can walk to the Memorial Archway in about 15 min, and then in 5 min you will get to Five Dragon Bridge, next to which is the ticket office.

Along the way to East Peak of Mount Huashan you should be very careful when passing the major dangerous passes, such as the above-mentioned Thousand-Foot Precipice, Hundred-Foot Crevice, Black Dragon Ridge and Golden Lock Pass.

East Peak (Facing Sun Peak)

Climbing to the top of East Peak of Mt. Huashan takes 4 to 6 hours. It has an altitude of 2,090 meters (6,857 feet), forming a platform for visitors to view the sunrise in fine weather. An astronomical telescope is provided here. The reference time for sunrise is 5:00a.m.-6:00a.m. in spring, 4:30a.m.-5:20a.m. in summer, 5:00a.m.-5:20a.m. in autumn and 5:30a.m.-6:00a.m. in winter.

One well-known scenic spot, the Immortal's Palm Peak, ranked as one of the Eight Scenic Wonders of the Xi'an, is located on the East Peak. It refers to the natural rock veins of the cliff, which look like a giant palm-print.

The legend goes that on March 3rd of the Lunar Calendar a torrential flood destroyed the villages within the Mount Huashan area. This disaster was caused by the Queen Mother of the West, who held her Flat Peach Carnival celebration that year. She carelessly spilled a little jade wine down from paradise, causing a serious flood below. This news was quickly reported by Deity Shaohao to the Jade Emperor in Celestial Paradise. He gave a prompt order to Deity Juling to go down to tame the flood. When Deity Juling, full of vigor and vitality, descended from the clouds, he arrived at the precipitous cliff of East Peak. At the moment that he laid his left hand on one side and his right leg on the other, he ripped Mount Huashan into two halves and immediately a flood rushed out. This tale adds luster to East Peak.

* After enjoying the sunrise at East peak, you can descend according to this route in case you have missed some scenic spots: East Peak – about 35 min to Heavenly South Gate – 5 min to Huashan Plank Road – 25 min to Heaven Watching Pool – 5 min to South Peak – 35 min to West Peak – 15 min to Middle Peak – 20 min back to Black Dragon Ridge – 25 min to Macaque Sorrow – 5 min to North Peak.

South Peak (Landing Wild Geese Peak)

With an altitude of 2,160 meters (7,087 feet), the South Peak is regarded as the monarch of Mount Huashan because it is the highest peak and also the highest peak among the Five Sacred Mountains of China. Visitors who summit South Peak are undoubtedly winners. Looking around when standing at the peak, the surrounding landscapes are luxuriantly green; the Yellow River wanders far below and everything seems small. A legend goes that the wild geese returning from the south often landed at South Peak, giving the area the name Landing Wild Geese Peak.

At the top of South Peak, the Black Dragon Pool at the summit and the Greeting Pines on the southwestern cliff are two attractive resorts. At each side of the Landing Wild Goose Peak there are two peaks, Songhui Peak (Pine and Juniper Peak) in the east and Xiaozi Peak (Filial Son Peak) in the west. The three peaks form a picture of a Titan sitting in a chair. The most dangerous place is Plank Road, a plank path built along the side of a vertical cliff, about 0.3 meters (1 foot) wide. Below is a bottomless gulf which makes visitors shake with fear. In addition, there is a Taoist temple called Baidi Temple or Jintian Palace, considered to be the host temple of Deity Shaohao.

West Peak (Lotus Flower Peak)

West Peak has very high cliffs standing erect with an altitude of 2,086.6 meters (6,845 feet). There is a Taoist temple called Cuiyun Palace, before which a huge rock looking like a lotus flower comes into view, hence the name Lotus Flower Peak. There are another seven rocks beside Cuiyun Palace, which is said to be the place where Chenxiang, a main character in the movie Lotus Lantern, ripped Mount Huashan to save his mother, The Heavenly Goddess San Sheng Mu.

Middle Peak (Jade Maiden Peak)

Middle Peak clings to East Peak and is in the center of East, South and West Peaks. There is a Taoist temple on the peak named Jade Maiden Temple. Legend has it that the daughter of Qin Mugong (569 - 621 BC) loved a man who was good at playing Chinese tung-hsiao (vertical flute) and she gave up the royal life to become a hermit who cultivated her spirituality here, hence the name Jade Maiden Peak. Today Jade Maiden Temple and Jade Maiden Basin for Shampooing can be found on the peak. Other scenic spots in Middle Peak include Rootless Tree and Sacrificing Tree, which have beautiful stories and add to the supernatural atmosphere of Middle Peak.

North Peak (Cloud Terrace Peak)

There are precipitous cliffs on all sides of North Peak, making it look like a flat terrace in the clouds, hence the name Cloud Terrace Peak. It is 1,614 meters (5,295 feet) high. Three sides are cliffs and one side is to the Ear-Touching Cliff, which is the fourth precipitous path where visitors can climb up only by pressing an ear close to the cliff. Almost halfway up the North Peak trees are luxuriantly green, creating a good rest spot.

Upon arrival at the North Peak, you can walk to the Cableway Station in 3-5 min and take the cable car to descend.

Tip on Easy Climbing by Cable Car

Visiting Huashan Mountain by cable car is another good choice for visitors. On the east side of Yuquan Temple, there is an about 8 kilometer (5 miles) long concrete road leading up to Wamiaogou where you can take a cable car directly to the North Peak of Mt. Huashan. The top station is located on the east cliff of North Peak. The whole ride is more than 1,500 meters (0.9 mile) long and takes seven or eight minutes. The other cable car line starts from Donggoukou to West Peak with a stop at White Sparrow Temple. The whole ride is about 4,211 meters (2.6 miles) long and takes about 20 minutes. It is easier to get to the South and East Peak from West Peak compared with the North Peak.

See more practical Travel Tips on weather, food, water, clothing, safety, sunrise watching and accommodation and so on.

2. Take metro line 1 to Fangzhicheng. After you leave from the station, you will see Fangzhicheng Bus Station. Take a bus to Huashan. The bus runs between 07:45 and 19:30. It costs CNY 37 and a single trip takes about 2 hours.Xi'an Bus / Metro Search

How to get back to Xi'an1. Take a taxi from Dongshanmen Parking Lot to Huashan North Station with a cost of about CNY 25, and then take Huashan - Xi'an Train for return-ride.2. There are many tourist buses from the Jade Spring Temple to Xi'an and just leave when a bus is full. The ticket fare is CNY 38.

Mar. - Nov.: CNY 280 for a round trip; CNY 140 for a one-way trip Dec. - Feb.: CNY 240 for a round trip; CNY 120 for a one-way trip Notice: 1) Wengyu Tourism Bus runs between Tourist Service Center and Donggoukou, the lower station of West Peak cable car. It costs CNY 40 for a one-way trip and CNY 80 for a round trip. 2) Visitors can get off at White Sparrow Temple. After visiting the temple, continue to take the cable car to the West Peak.

Wamiaogou - North Peak

Mar. - Nov.: CNY 150 for a round trip; CNY 80 for a one-way trip Dec. - Feb.: CNY 80 for a round trip; CNY 45 for a one-way trip Notice: Huangfuyu Tourism Bus runs between Tourist Service Center and Wamiaogou, the lower station of North Peak cable car. It costs CNY 20 for a one-way trip and CNY 40 for a round trip.

Further Readings:Known as “the Number One Precipitous Mountain under Heaven”, Mt. Huashan is one of the five sacred mountains in China. The other four are Mt. Taishan in Shandong, Mt. Hengshan in Hunan, Mt. Hengshan in Shanxi, and Mt. Songshan in Henan.

ticket entance fee dan cable car fee for children below 16 year old and below 140cm

Answers (1)

Answered by Leonard from CANADA | Feb. 01, 2020 19:37

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Only children under 1.2 meters can enjoy the free tickets. Otherwise, they need to pay the adult ticket. As I know, children between 6 and 18 years old can purchase the half-price ticket.

Asked by Goffar from INDONESIA | Jan. 18, 2020 05:40Reply

Camp on Huashan Mountain

Hi, I have a plan to visit Xi'an this winter. I'll take my hiking gear with me and I'd like to spend a night on the hiking trail / campsite near Xi'an. Is there any campsite on Huashan? Or is it possible to spend a night there?

Thanks,

GoffarIndonesian - studying and living in Beijing

Answers (1)

Answered by Jerry from GERMANY | Jan. 18, 2020 23:21

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In order to watch the sunrise, many people will camp or stay in a hotel on the mountain.

Asked by Ena from ALBANIA | Jan. 08, 2020 05:49Reply

Question for the cable line

Hello, I am planing a trip on Xi'an this spring festival I would like to visit the Mount around the 24th of January how crowdy will it be? Also could you tell me what time is the last train to get back to xian ? Lastly do the prices changes for these days?

Answers (1)

Answered by Sara from THAILAND | Jan. 09, 2020 17:05

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It will be very crowded due to spring festival holiday. The last train from Huashan North Railway Station to Xi'an North Railway Station departs at 22:19. The fare for a second-class seat is always CNY54.5.

Asked by Alex Denney from UNITED KINGDOM | Dec. 04, 2019 06:45Reply

Can you buy a one way ticket for the cable car at the top of Huashan Mountain?